Abstract

The wine yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae NCIM 3095 was immobilized in sodium alginate beads as a biocatalyst in/for pomegranate wine making. The immobilized biocatalyst was suitable for pomegranate must fermentation at ambient temperatures. In order to optimize immobilization conditions, a study was conducted using various concentrations of alginate, cell loading and bead diameter. The optimized parameters were alginate concentration 3% (w/v), initial cell loading 8 g/100 ml and cell bead diameter of 3 mm. In comparison to free cells, the rate of fermentation by immobilized cell proved to be greater, showing suitability for fruit wine production.

Key words: Pomegranate wine, immobilization, Saccharomyces cerevisiae NCIM3095, sodium alginate.